With December upon us and Christmas dominating the media landscape, it can be difficult for PR efforts to be heard over all the jingle bells. But fear not! There are ways you can make your PR count this Christmas!
1.) Make your content festive
Whether you opt for a festive-themed social media post or a Christmas blog (like this one!), incorporating Christmas into your regular content can help promote healthy engagement from your audience. Christmas is most likely at the forefront of their minds, after all.
Posting Christmas-themed social media content can also allow you to jump on holiday hashtags, helping expose your business to a wider audience.
If you want to go the extra mile, you could even incorporate Christmas into your design. For example, modifying your corporate logo with Christmas colours, or adding a Santa hat. You could even revamp your website layout with a ‘Merry Christmas’ banner for added festivity.
However, whatever Christmassy content you go for, make sure it’s relevant to your business and services to maintain professionalism.
2.) Think about giving back
Christmas is traditionally the time for giving, not just to loved ones but to those less fortunate, with many people choosing to reach out and help their communities during the festive season.
Businesses are also known for stepping up their usual charitable activities. For example, this year, Sainsburys will be donating £200,000 to Comic Relief, supported by profits made from their Christmas homeware sales.
There are plenty of benefits to getting your company involved in charity work over the festive period. Not only is it good for team morale and an all-round great thing to do, it can also be very beneficial for your company image. A win-win!
Consider donating money to a good cause through a Christmas fundraiser, or organise an employee volunteering day. It can even be as simple as setting up a charity donation box in your office.
Whatever you choose, don’t forget to capture your efforts, and promote them online.
3.) Gifts
Sending a Christmas gift or personalised Christmas card is another great PR tactic to employ this Christmas. Sending these to current clients, as well as potential and former clients during a time where everybody is feeling a little extra generous can go a long way.
4.) Prepare your post-Christmas pitches
The bit between Christmas and New Year (sometimes called ‘Twixtmas’ or ‘Chrimbo Limbo) is traditionally a period of downtime, when many people are on holiday and no-one really knows what day it is.
It’s also a quiet time for the media, with most of the political and business world taking a break. This makes it the ideal time to get some coverage. If you can time a newsworthy press release or relevant comment piece for this fallow period, you’ll probably find journalists and editors are more receptive than usual.
5.) Keep communicating
Most importantly, keep producing content. Although fewer people might see it in the run-up to Christmas, communicating while your competitors are silent can still be a huge advantage. It’s also worth having January content polished and ready to go before the holidays to avoid the rush that comes with the new year.
If you want to add some festive sparkle to your PR efforts this holiday season, get in touch. At Petersens PR we can make your social media sing and your press releases ring!